Help your homeschool student answer the question of what to do after high school with this self-paced online course, College and Career Readiness, by Mr. D Math.
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Most kids struggle, at least to some degree, with what to do after high school. Homeschool high school students are no exception.
My second son is about to graduate from high school, and he’s really been unsure of what he wants to do next. We’ve been through all the options many times, but he just hasn’t felt confident in pursuing any particular path, and it was really starting to bother him.
Heading into his last semester of high school, I suggested that we add Mr. D Math College and Career Readiness course to his schedule. He was a little hesitant at first because Mr. D Math is known for their live courses. My kiddo is an introvert.
When he found out that this class is offered as a self-paced online course, though, he was more than ready to give it a try!
This course can definitely be done independently, but we are going through it together for a couple of reasons:
- I need to gather information in order to write a homeschool curriculum review of Mr. D Math College and Career Readiness.
- My son needs the opportunity to talk through the process with someone. If I watch the videos with him and know what the assignments are, I’m better equipped to have these conversations with him.
NOTE: Mr. D Math is the name of the company that offers this homeschool curriculum. The College and Career Readiness course is not a math class. It is a life skills class.
How Can Mr. D Math College and Career Readiness Help Your Homeschooler Decide What To Do After High School?
We are only a few weeks into the course, but my son is already starting to take some more concrete measures to figure out his next steps after high school.
Even though he has always said he didn’t want to go to college, we have made sure that his academics provided a foundation for any path he might want to pursue later in life. Here we are in his last semester of high school, and he has started asking questions about college.
That’s why we try to prepare them for anything! He might not decide to go to college right out of high school. He’s considering some other options as well. But if college is something he wants to do at any point, he shouldn’t have a problem being accepted.
Goals and Time-Management
Right out of the gate, Mr. D starts helping students put some goals in place. His goal-setting philosophy and process is very similar to mine. It’s very much a “let’s get this down on paper and start working towards it” approach.
I love how he integrates the idea of personal responsibility throughout the course! He lets students know upfront that they will only get out of the class what they put into it.
Students are given training on how to use valuable tools like Google Calendar and Google Docs to help them learn how to manage their time well and keep things organized.
We haven’t been through the rest of the course yet, so I can’t give you specifics on the content of the other lessons. But I’ll let you know which topics are covered in the different sections.
Download Your FREE Goal-Setting Starter Pack for Teens!
Financial Planning
The financial literacy lessons cover long-term wealth building, buying and selling stocks (including a virtual stock market game), bank accounts, and credit cards. There is also a project about financing a car.
Entrepreneurship
Developing entrepreneurs will learn about discovering their passion, crowd funding, creating mastermind groups, and managing life like a business.
College or Career Prep
Students will learn how to research a company or university and prepare a resume. They will also take two virtual field trips-one to EA Sports and one to Walden University (one of my alma maters!)
Learning Styles
Brain mapping and a multiple intelligences quiz are used to help students discover their learning styles and connect them to possible career matches.
Personal Note: I was very pleased to see that the theory of multiple intelligences is utilized in this course. I used this as the foundational theory for my dissertation study on the experiences of homeschool students with ADHD.
The Self-Paced Online Course Structure
Videos
Each lesson begins with a recorded video of Mr. D teaching to a group of students in a live format from a previous session of the College and Career Readiness course.
This is great for allowing the self-paced students to still get the feel of being in a live class. Mr. D has a lot of interaction in his live classes by responding to his students who are typing into the chatbox. If your student is one who would normally like to participate in that type of setting, they might feel a little removed from the interaction.
My son is perfectly fine letting others do the chatting, so he’s not bothered by this at all. There have been times when Mr. D stops to allow the class to complete an activity. We usually just fast forward a bit if it’s taking longer than my son needs.
Because the videos are pre-recorded from a live class, Mr. D sometimes refers to discussion questions and such that the students in that class were to complete. The self-paced students just need to remember that the references to those types of things don’t apply to them in the same way.
Assignments
The assignments in Mr. D Math College and Career Readiness self-paced online course are very manageable! Most of them consist of writing a short paragraph, watching a supplemental video, or completing a short exercise. There are no tests.
The lessons are set up to do one per week. Of course, since it’s self-paced learning, your student can move more quickly or slowly, as needed. From what I’ve seen so far, it seems like most lessons (videos and assignments) won’t take more than 1-2 hours.
Grading
We were a little unsure of how grading with the self-paced online course would work at first. Would it be parent-graded or graded by the program in some way?
After my son turned in his first assignment, we found out that there is a teaching assistant who grades the written assignments. She gave him feedback comments and recorded his grade.
There are several assignments in the course that are done on the honor system, such as watching supplemental videos, starting a Google calendar, playing the stock market game, etc. For these items, the student gets full credit if they record that they completed the task.
Access and Availability
The self-paced courses are available year-round. Once you purchase a course, you can submit assignments until March of the following school year. The course will still be accessible to you after that for reference. You just won’t be able to submit assignments.
If you do find that you need more time, though, Mr. D Math will work with you to make that happen, too.
Cost
Mr. D Math College and Career Readiness is a one-semester course that is worth 1/2 a credit on a high school transcript.
The cost, as of this writing, is $97 for the self-paced online course. The cost of the live classes is different. Please check the Mr. D Math website for the current pricing of all courses.
My Senior’s Opinion of Mr. D Math College and Career Readiness
We are only a few weeks into the course, but my son already has strong opinions about Mr. D Math College and Career Readiness. He says it’s the only class he’s taken that he can really see the value of how he can use it later in life.
Now, as a homeschool mom, this stung a little bit, I have to admit. I mean, I’ve worked tirelessly to try to provide my kids with meaningful educational experiences.
He told me not to take it personally (Um…ok). He just doesn’t think he’ll ever use sine, cosine, and tangent in the real world, so he doesn’t think it’s relevant. I told him I was going to laugh and laugh if he ended up in a career where he needs to use that!
Anyway, I now feel the need to completely reevaluate my life as both a mom and an educator, but I do that about once a quarter anyway. Yay for my son getting value out of Mr. D Math College and Career Readiness!
Other Options From Mr. D Math
Math, Of Course!
Mr. D Math is most well known for providing quality math courses. Although we haven’t personally used any of his math courses, I’ve read rave reviews across many homeschool groups.
I’m sure that his relatable style of teaching within the College and Career Readiness course is carried over into all of Mr. D’s classes. He’s been teaching math for over 30 years, so he knows what he’s talking about!
The math courses that are offered on Mr. D Math are:
- Pre-Algebra
- Algebra 1
- Geometry
- Algebra 2
- Pre-Calculus with Trigonometry
- SAT Math Bootcamp
- ACT Math Bootcamp
- Consumer Math
- Summer Math Readiness Classes
Live Classes
Although most courses are offered in the self-paced online format, the live classes are a great option as well! Mr. D Math offers a variety of schedule choices to accommodate student needs.
Most of the live classes meet once a week in an online classroom environment. There are some faster-paced courses available that meet twice per week.
Extra help sessions are available twice a week for both live and self-paced students, and instructors will answer questions by email as well.
Other Courses
Mr. D Math has expanded into several more subject areas beyond math and added some great instructors to the team! This has allowed them to offer the following courses:
- Advanced Writing
- American Sign Language
- College and Career Readiness
- Music and Physical Education
- Study Skills
- Technology
A Great Addition to Our Homeschool High School
Overall, we are very pleased with the Mr. D Math College and Career Readiness self-paced online course. It has already been immensely helpful to my senior to help him figure out what to do after high school.
I plan to have my freshman do this course much sooner…probably next school year. I really believe it is one of the best online homeschool programs available. I think we might try out some of the test prep courses next!